Servant of the People in Kyiv

Chapter 115 Video Store

That day, Haniyev woke up from a hangover and just opened his eyes when a glass of water was placed in front of him. He opened his eyes after drinking it and thought it was his mother, but he saw Tatyana's bright smiling face.

"You came?"

"I don't have classes today, so I came here just to play with you."

Haniyev reached out and pulled Tatiana onto the bed. As his big hands moved around, he asked, "Then I won't go out today and stay with you."

After more than an hour of excitement, Haniyev began to wash up and discuss with Tatiana where to go for fun.

After a few words, Haniyev suddenly remembered Poroshenko who had come to visit him the day before yesterday. He quickly rinsed his mouth and said, "Do you want to see a movie, a Hollywood blockbuster? I have a little brother who can get the movie?"

Tatyana had also heard that Poroshenko was Haniyev's younger brother. She nodded and said, "Is that Poroshenko? I want to watch Star Wars 6. I've seen all the other ones, but I can't find a clear video of the sixth one in our country."

Haniyev immediately called Poroshenko.

Less than half an hour later, Poroshenko personally arrived at Haniyev's house carrying a box of the latest American movie discs.

"Brother, these are the latest high-definition discs. They include Star Wars 6 and two spin-offs, Back to the Future, Platoon, Alien, Top Gun, and Bruce Lee's kung fu movies..."

Seeing Tatyana looking through the film with surprise, Haniyev nodded in satisfaction and said, "Well done."

"Thanks to you, Brother Victor, otherwise I wouldn't have had the opportunity to do such a big business."

Poroshenko has now shed his student-like innocence and looks very mature, but his attitude towards Haniyev is more humble than before.

After New Year's Day in 1987, Poroshenko opened three video stores in Kiev's flea markets and black markets. He not only rented Western movie discs, but also had several theaters for direct viewing. This business had been secretly done by some individuals in the black market before, but it mainly sold discs, and the number and variety of discs were very limited.

Now that the spring breeze of reform has reached Kiev, and Poroshenko has people above him, he was the first to start a video store business while skirting the rules.

The Soviet system had become so rigid that ordinary people could no longer tolerate it. The social contradiction between material supply and soaring prices made the black market very active. Prohibition and isolation also made the citizens extremely spiritually destitute, and they were extremely envious of the Western debauchery.

So after Poroshenko's video store opened, it ushered in a booming month of business, making him tens of thousands of rubles in profit every month.

However, due to the booming black market at this time, the underworld had already grown at the grassroots level of the Soviet Union.

In February, hooligans started making trouble and demanding money. At that time, Poroshenko was not yet the oligarch who could call the shots in later generations. He was helpless and could only ask Haniyev for help.

At that time, Haniyev was busy promoting the tertiary industry in Yalta, and only found time to call Comrade Novikov, the First Minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Kiev.

Around that evening, the Kyiv Ministry of Internal Affairs launched a crackdown, and then the video store continued to operate, and business was even more prosperous than before.

The action of the Ministry of Internal Affairs police was mainly aimed at the video store, but the side effect was that it gave a chance to respite many small vendors and people who were harassed by gangs. They kept praising the Ministry of Internal Affairs police for being able to do something.

From then on, Poroshenko's three video stores were able to gain a foothold in Kiev. This guy was also a good person. He quickly sent a generous thank-you payment to Novikov and Nikolay through Haniyev's relationship, and since then he had a relationship with the two big bosses.

Poroshenko did not just leave the disc. He consciously found the Star Wars disc and VCD and debugged and played them.

After the film officially started, he smiled and said, "Brother Victor, Tatiana, you guys watch the movie. I'm leaving first. Call me if you need anything."

Haniyev lowered his head and said, "Wait for me, dear. I'll go see him off."

Leaving Tatyana to watch the movie by herself, Haniyev took a box of cigarettes and went downstairs with Poroshenko.

Standing in the yard, Haniyev handed Poroshenko a cigarette. He naturally took it and lit it for Haniyev first, and then lit it for himself.

After taking two puffs of smoke, Haniyev smiled and said, "I used to smoke a lot when I was in school, but I forgot about it when I got busy with work. Now I don't even think about smoking. How come I don't have a smoking addiction?"

Poroshenko flicked the ash from his cigarette and said with a smile, "Brother, you are devoted to the Soviet cause and have long forgotten about eating, drinking and having fun. Naturally, smoking will not be a temptation for you."

"Everyone who succeeds has their strengths. Peter, you're really great."

The more Haniyev got along with Poroshenko, the more he felt that he was an extremely intelligent person who always made him feel very comfortable.

Poroshenko laughed, and Haniyev asked, "You're running your video store well. Isn't it time to consider setting up a formal company?"

"It's all thanks to you, otherwise we would have closed down long ago."

Poroshenko scratched his head and said, "I'm already going through the formalities. I'm going to name it 'Rosen Image' and use the rose as its logo. What do you think?"

"Very good. I've said before that I'm only responsible for investment and dividends. You decide how to run the business yourself. I won't interfere."

Haniyev smiled and nodded, saying, "But I have to remind you, although the video store is profitable, it's because we were the first to open it and took advantage of it. This business is very easy to replicate. You have connections, and there are people in Kyiv who are well-connected. They can also get good foreign films. I think it won't be long before there will be many video stores on the streets of Kyiv. By then, our business will be impossible to be as prosperous as it is now. You have to start looking for new business."

Poroshenko exclaimed, "Brother Victor, you are truly wise and intelligent. Five video stores have already opened in Kyiv, with eight more under renovation. They will likely open next month. I estimate that our good business will only last for six months at most, and will probably falter by next year. But even if it does falter, it will still earn more than my small business at school."

Haniyev shook his head slightly. "Don't be easily satisfied. The General Secretary is implementing reforms now. The political situation and economic policies are changing rapidly. There are many opportunities waiting for those who are interested. You must open your eyes and don't wait until the opportunity to make a fortune is snatched away by others before you regret it!"

Poroshenko's face changed, and he nodded solemnly: "Brother, I have learned your lesson. I will remember it."

Chapter 116 Exclusive Interview

After seeing Poroshenko off, Haniyev flicked away the cigarette butt and rinsed his mouth in the living room on the first floor before going back upstairs.

The two stayed in the room until night, when Haniyev hugged Tatyana and went downstairs and drove her back to the school dormitory.

The car stopped downstairs of Tatiana's dormitory, and the two kissed passionately for a long time before reluctantly parting.

"If I didn't have to study early tomorrow morning and submit my project to my tutor, I really wouldn't want to leave you."

Tatyana held Haniyev's face and said affectionately.

"I won't be back for three days. I'll come see you tomorrow night."

"Ah."

After watching Tatyana go upstairs, Haniyev looked at his watch: "It's already 7:30. Anatoly and the others must be getting impatient."

Muttering, Haniyev quickly started the car and left.

When Haniyev returned to Kiev a few days ago, Anato was the only one among his close friends who did not go to the airport to pick him up, because Anato was in London at the time. After learning that Haniyev had been promoted and returned to Kiev, he made a special trip to send a telegram to Haniyev and then returned home early.

As agreed, Anato invited Haniyev and several old classmates to have drinks in Sergei's dormitory tonight.

It took Haniyev only ten minutes to walk from the girls' dormitory downstairs to the staff dormitory. By the time he entered, Sergei, Pristin and Anato had already drunk two bottles of white wine.

There were some sausages and salads on the table. Looking at this familiar scene made Haniyev feel as if he was back to the time before he started working.

But looking at Anato and Pristin in their suits, Haniyev sighed softly: "Time loves you like a butcher's knife!"

"Stop writing poetry here, our great talent."

Sergei pulled Haniyev in and slammed the door shut.

Four childhood friends sat on the sofa, joking with each other. In a moment, the sense of distance caused by not seeing each other for a long time disappeared.

After a glass of wine, Sergei curled his lips in envy. "Yuri (Vyshchesky) is enjoying a good life with you. I spoke to him on the phone a few days ago. He now earns 800 rubles a month, has a private car, a villa, and has 1,000 rubles for disposable expenses every month. That life is much better than being a bus driver in Kiev. Tsk tsk, I'm so envious..."

Pristin nodded. "Yes, before Victor came back, he sorted out Yuri's job. Now Yuri is the head of the Yalta City Health and Social Care Committee, a real official. Who knows, even the most honest Vyshchesky might become governor in the future."

Anato raised an eyebrow and said, "Let's congratulate Victor on his promotion to a high-ranking official in Moscow. Let's raise a toast together."

"Yes, yes. Congratulations."

After a drink together, Anatol asked, "Why did you refuse an interview with our national news agency, as well as requests from Reuters, AFP, and the Associated Press?"

"My position is too low to be in the spotlight."

Haniyev waved his hand gently: "Don't try to persuade me to accept an interview. Even if you ask me, I won't accept it."

Anato pursed his lips. "If you don't want to, I won't force you. It's just that you're being too cautious. I remember that the model figures that Khitan introduced back then were all promoted and reused. Wasn't that worker from Daqing a member of the Central Committee? The secretary of Dazhai even became a Vice Premier of the State Council. Gorbachev put you and Yeltsin together as models of advanced reform. Yeltsin was already a provincial and ministerial leader, but you're still a small deputy bureau-level official. People say that Gorbachev wanted to train Yeltsin to be a leader of the Party and the country. Judging from your current momentum, you should be able to become a member of the Central Committee in the future, and maybe even enter the Politburo!"

Sergei and Pristin are a gluttonous and playful janitor and a professional doctor respectively. Both of them are not as politically sensitive as Anato, who is already a formal reporter for Reuters.

"What? Victor can join the Politburo. Doesn't that make him a vice-state-level leader?"

Seeing his two old friends' surprised faces, Anato said unhappily, "You've forgotten what Victor did last year. He was someone Sherbitsky valued, and now Gorbachev values ​​him again, and has even transferred him to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Moscow. Don't you think this means he needs to be trained as a priority?"

After hearing Anato's analysis, Sergei and Pristin, who had not thought much about it, suddenly became excited.

The two men stood up, pulled Haniyev, and said, "If you become the leader of the Soviet Union, I want to be the president of Kyiv University!"

"I want to be the secretary of the Ministry of Health!"

Anato chuckled and said, "Then I won't work at Reuters anymore. When I come back, I'll be satisfied if you can make me the president of TASS!"

Haniyev, still drunk, also laughed out loud: "Okay, when I become General Secretary, you will all be big leaders of the Soviet Union."

……

Soon the four of them drank too much and fell asleep in Sergei's doghouse.

When I woke up the next day, Poroshenko, who had already smelled the food, brought me milk, coffee and pizza.

After a quick wash, the four of them sat down to have breakfast.

"When are you leaving, Victor?"

"I'll take a flight tomorrow afternoon, arriving in Moscow tonight, and report to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs the day after tomorrow morning."

Anato wiped his mouth. "Recently, Yeltsin has given exclusive interviews to TASS, Reuters, the Associated Press, and Agence France-Presse, talking about the achievements and significance of his reforms. He's been in the spotlight both at home and abroad. To be honest, Mr. Mike is very angry about your refusal to be interviewed by Reuters. He told me that Reuters had never compromised on anything you asked for before, but now they want to get some information from you about the Soviet Union's reform pilot projects, but you're unwilling to tell them. He thinks you've forgotten your friendship with him, so he sent me back to persuade you..."

Haniyev paused with his coffee cup, put it down, and asked, "I told you yesterday why I didn't want to be interviewed. Do you really think I need to be in the spotlight again?"

"Gorbachev admired you for your successful Yalta reforms. Our General Secretary desperately wanted the West's understanding and approval, which is why Yeltsin boasted about the reforms in interviews with foreign media. It's good that you don't want to be in the spotlight, but Yeltsin's coverage is overwhelming. If you deliberately refuse to be covered, wouldn't it seem like you have ulterior motives? Gorbachev is not a very prudent person. Wouldn't he think you don't genuinely support the reforms?"

Anato whispered, "I think you should accept interviews with foreign media and brag about the achievements of the Yalta Reforms. And emphasize that the Yalta Reforms weren't the result of your own personal effort, but rather the product of an in-depth study of the spirit of Gorbachev's documents. In other words, you should declare to foreign media that the Yalta Reforms were successful, a model and example for the Soviet Union, and that such achievements were entirely due to Gorbachev's correct decisions!"

Haniyev's mind suddenly cleared. After a moment's reflection, he nodded. "I admit you're right. I didn't consider things comprehensively enough before. I was only thinking about keeping a low profile, forgetting that not expressing a position or expressing one later can also be a form of attitude. With my current status, I've already been watched by countless eyes. I should follow Yeltsin's lead and express my position."

Anato continued, "Since Yeltsin is willing to accept an interview, you should also accept it. This will not only be beneficial to your work after you go to Moscow, but will also satisfy Mr. Mike. After all, you will need to use Reuters in the future, right?"

Haniyev nodded and said with some surprise, "It's been a few months since we last met. Your political acumen has improved so quickly, Anato!"

Anato scratched his head and smiled, "I learned all this from some bigwigs when I was in London. I'll conduct an interview with you, and we can review the manuscript together when it's sent back to London. I must ensure that this interview, as the Khitan people say, will bring you a hundred benefits and no harm..."

Haniyev chuckled and said, "It has 100 percent benefits and no harm."

After confirming the time for the interview with Anato, Haniyev went to Nikolay's house first.

This is the base of Sherbitsky's forces, and Nikolay, as Sherbitsky's grandson who has been carefully cultivated in recent years, naturally became Sherbitsky's spokesperson in Kiev.

As the uncrowned king of Ukraine, even though Shcherbitsky was far away in the Friendship Sanatorium in Yalta, before he retired, he had already arranged his most trusted confidants into several core departments such as the Central Secretariat, the Central Committee, and the Council of Ministers to ensure that his will could continue to be implemented on the land of Ukraine.

The current First Secretary of Ukraine, Gulenko, is also a junior promoted by Sherbitsky. In addition, Sherbitsky is also a member of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, so Sherbitsky is still the real boss of Ukraine.

The Soviet Union was different from the Khitan. The Khitan had Politburo members and Standing Committee members, with the Standing Committee members at the state level and the members at the vice-state level. However, because the Soviet Union was a union republic, its Central Politburo was very large and had no Standing Committee members, with only about a dozen members.

Therefore, even Sherbitsky, the First Secretary of Ukraine and a veteran figure of the Soviet Union, was only a member of the Central Political Bureau. If we compare the Central Political Bureau of the Soviet Union with that of Khitan, the status and rights of a member of the Central Political Bureau of the Soviet Union are roughly equal to those of a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of Khitan.

Therefore, if Gorbachev wants to make Sherbitsky lose control of Ukraine, he must first remove him from his position as a member of the Politburo and then purge the Central Committee of Ukraine.

However, this is not easy to do. Even in the original historical line, without Haniyev's interference, Sherbitsky was in an extremely passive situation due to the Chernobyl incident. He still held on until September 1989 before being removed from his positions as First Secretary of Ukraine and member of the Central Political Bureau.

Sherbitsky is now more confident than in the past. Even though he has retired from the position of First Secretary of Ukraine, he can choose to come out at any time, so Gorbachev chose to cooperate with him, and his identity as a member of the Politburo of the Central Committee is naturally as stable as a rock.

After reporting to Nikolay his thoughts on whether to accept the interview, Nikolay immediately called Sherbitsky.

After listening to Haniyev's analysis, Sherbitsky allowed Haniyev to be interviewed by Reuters and issued instructions:

“You can brag about reforms, but don’t be too exaggerated.”

Haniyev understood what Shcherbitsky meant.

In the eyes of the Soviet high-level officials, Haniyev's attitude in a sense represented Sherbitsky's attitude. Unless Sherbitsky openly suppressed Haniyev, what Haniyev said was roughly what Sherbitsky meant.

Therefore, if Haniyev were to accept interviews with foreign media and boast about reforms like Yeltsin did, it would be despised by the old Soviet cadres, as it would affect Sherbitsky's image and evaluation.

Perhaps to protect his own image and political capital, Shcherbitsky made a final, clear statement to Haniyev: "When you go to Moscow, be sure to thank Gorbachev constantly and never mention me. I will also make some arrangements to make sure people think you have betrayed me and become a Gorbachev supporter. This will benefit you and me."

After hanging up the phone, Haniyev fell into deep thought. Nikolay thought he was angry, so he whispered, "My grandfather's status is sensitive. You are now a cadre valued by Gorbachev. When you go to Moscow, you should establish your status properly and be a pioneer of reform. This will help your future..."

"I understand."

Haniyev nodded, and then said, "I didn't expect the old man to be so attentive to me. I am really touched..."

As Haniyev spoke, his eyes turned red. There was an element of acting in it, but he was indeed moved.

After expressing his loyalty to Nikolay for a long time, Haniyev said goodbye and left.

After returning home, Haniyev informed Anato, and the two had an interview in Haniyev's study the next morning.

There are many advantages to having one's own reporter. The questions and content of this interview were jointly decided by the two of them. Then Anato set up the video recorder and asked questions according to the procedure, while Haniyev, dressed in a suit and tie, sat upright and answered the questions one by one according to the prepared questions.

Haniyev explained in detail all the issues concerning the Yalta reforms and attributed the achievements of Yalta to the Party Central Committee and the General Secretary.

The interview ended quickly. After checking the camera, Anato nodded with satisfaction.

"I'll report to Mr. Mike when I get back. He'll be very satisfied."

Haniyev nodded. "You are personally responsible for this interview segment, including the subsequent Reuters report. You must also supervise it. Don't make things worse!"

"Don't worry, I will be personally responsible for every step!"